Some Christian groups scoff at the blessing of water as the intrusion of pagan ritual in the life of the Church. But in the act of the Great Blessing of Waters, the Orthodox Christian theology of Creation and Redemption is revealed to us.

Often people are put off by the world "theology" as if it were some secret art or knowledge that was only the concern of theologians and scholars. But theology is very important to all who are believers. Theology is, very simply put, our vision of God and our relationship to Him. Without theology we can have no relationship with God or each other. For example, a common remark, usually given to minimize the differences between faiths, is "After all, there is only one God."

This is certainly true. There is only one God-- but there are many theologies of God. The late Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran certainly believed that there was only one God; but his theology of God permitted him and his followers to persecute and commit heinous acts in the name of God.

As Orthodox Christians, we believe that our theology has been revealed to the Church by the Holy Spirit. The Scriptures, the Creed, the liturgical life and the prayer life of the Church are all places where this revelation has taken place.

Our theology teaches us to pray because we believe that God accepts and is receptive to prayer. Our theology teaches us to celebrate the Sacraments because in our vision of them-- a vision revealed to the Church through by the Holy Spirit-- they are the means of entering into union with God.

Similarly, our theology teaches us to bless water, especially on the Feast of Theophany, because in entering the Jordan Christ has come to sanctify all of Creation which itself is in need of redemption. As the Apostle Paul tells us:

For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of Him Who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and obtain the glorious liberty of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning in travail together until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.

-- Romans 8:19-23

The currently popular book by Gary Zukav, The Seat of the Soul, presents a very different vision of creation. He, like many other New Age writers, draws very much from Hinduism, which is the world's oldest pagan religion. If God had not revealed Himself to Abraham and manifested His fullness in Christ, our society might have a similar sort of faith. It would likely have been centered on the ancient gods and goddesses of Greece and Rome with their mythologies as "Scriptures" for this sort of religion. Drawing on his latent Hinduism, and "new age" theology, Zukav informs us:

The Earth has agreed to interact with the human species, and to allow the development of this species to merge with its own consciousness.

In this system of belief there is the view that all things, however inanimate, possess consciousness, and that the earth itself is a sentient being. Moreover, this "sentient earth" has agreed to host our race! In such a view, God is certainly not seen as a Creator or "personal" at all.

Like the Deists of the 18th century, these theologians believe that God simply established principles for the universe to operate-- much like winding an alarm clock and then walking away from it. Everything is evolving and creation itself isnothing more than sustained evolution. To quote Gary Zukav again:

It is possible, and it does happen, that human beings' souls come from the advanced soul energy of the dolphin soul or the ape soul, and begin their process of evolution into the human soul.

Contrast this with Psalm 8:3-6:

When I consider Thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast ordained; What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the Son of Man, that Thou visitest him? For Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under his feet...

For Thou of Thine own will hast brought all things out of nothingness info being, by Thy power Thou dost hold together all Creation, and by Thy Providence Thou dost govern the world.

Grant to all those who touch it, who anoint themselves with it or drink from it, sanctification, blessing, cleansing and health....

Orthodox Theology teaches us that we are not the products of evolution either physical or "spiritual" but have been created out of love by a God Who wills to be an active part of our existence, sending to us our Saviour Jesus Christ to redeem us after we rejected His love and the Holy Spirit to sanctify us and renew in us His Divine Life.

The "new age" fantasies, to which we have contrasted this theology, are revealed of God but, like the myths on which they are based, are the creation of human beings who are often seeking to be "spiritual" without bearing the "burden" of a moral life. Almost two thousand years ago the Apostle Paul described the "new age" theologians of his day who likewise rejected the revelation of God for their own "theology". His words are still accurate today:

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of men who by their wickedness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. Ever since the creation of the world His invisible nature, namely, His eternal power and deity, has been clearly perceived in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse; for although they knew God they did not honor Him as God or give thanks to Him, but they became futile in their thinking and their senseless minds were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man or birds or animals or reptiles. Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, Who is blessed forever! Amen.